


calm down

by aqdanfin



Category: RuPaul's Drag Race RPF
Genre: Angst, Anthony is mad bc people are jerks, Cisboys, Drag Queens, Kinda non au, M/M, Maxwell is sick, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-04
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-11-01 12:25:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17867225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aqdanfin/pseuds/aqdanfin
Summary: anthony comes home from a gig angry, and maxwell is determined to figure out why.





	calm down

**Author's Note:**

> this was originally posted on my wattpad account, @-fsociety, and on artificialqueens as danfin.
> 
> some people are asking for vixen x cracker so i'm gonna try writing some. i love both queens, so why not? there will be a bit of angst, but nothing too bad. also, shoutout to an anon on tumblr that helped me come up with vixen and cracker's ship name! enjoy ♡

Maxwell flinched at the sound of a door slamming and angry muttering. He looked at the digital clock on the bedside table. It was past midnight. He had a feeling Anthony was home, and, judging by the door's slamming, something bad must have happened and made him mad during his gig.

“I wonder what happened this time,” he said to himself. He yawned and shivered slightly as he got out of bed and walked towards the living room. Maxwell couldn't go to the club to watch Anthony perform that night because he had caught the flu. He didn't want to make a fellow audience member sick. He needed to get better so he could do his own gigs as well.

He walked as quietly as possible. He felt along the walls since it was so dark. The only light sources were a small light in the kitchen and the New York City lights filtering through the apartment windows.

When he entered the dimly lit living room, he waited for his eyes to adjust before he finally made out Anthony's figure sitting on the couch. Anthony was hunched over, holding his head in his hands. His body was tense. His breathing was faster than normal, but it was beginning to slow down. Maxwell's suspicions were pretty much confirmed. Judging by Anthony's body language, he was angry.

 _Should I ask him what's wrong? Would that be poking the bear?_ Maxwell was unsure of how to approach Anthony. He knew very well that Anthony had a habit of saying things he didn't mean when he was angry. Most of the time, those things were very hurtful. He was working on controlling himself better, but he had not mastered it yet.

Maxwell stood behind Anthony awkwardly. He stayed silent. _What do I say?_ He did not feel like fighting tonight. He was drowsy due to the flu medicine and lack of sleep. He had no idea what he - or Anthony - would say if they fought. It would probably be something they'd regret.

Then, as if Anthony had sensed that Maxwell was behind him, he sat up straight and turned around. Maxwell froze like a deer in headlights. 

“Maxwell?” Anthony said in a confused tone. 

He had forced himself to forget about his problems for now, and act as if everything was okay. He could deal with it later. He didn't need Maxwell to worry about him, especially while he was sick.

“Yes?” Maxwell replied.

“What are you doing up? You should be sleeping.”

Maxwell sighed in relief. _Thank goodness he's not yelling at me._ It was obvious that Anthony had calmed down, as his body didn't look as tense anymore. 

Maxwell walked over to the couch and sat down beside Anthony. He looked down as he spoke. “I know I should be asleep, but I heard you come in. You sounded pissed...” He finally looked up at Anthony, “What's up?”

“You shouldn't worry about me,” Anthony said, avoiding Maxwell's question. “I'm perfectly fine.” He forced a smile, but Maxwell wasn't buying it. Maxwell looked him directly in his eyes.

“Anthony, you make me talk about my feelings,” Maxwell said. “It's your turn now.” _I hope I don't sound too pushy. This is for his own good._

Maxwell watched as Anthony looked away from him and at the ground. He shivered once again. Both he and Anthony stayed silent. It was obvious that getting Anthony to talk wasn't going to be an easy task. He was stubborn and very strong-willed. If he didn't want to do something, he probably wouldn't do it.

Still, Maxwell persisted. He could be stubborn, too.

“Come on, Anthony. Please? For me?”

Anthony looked over at Maxwell. “I don't want to hurt you...”

“Anthony, you won't hurt me. Please?” Maxwell gave Anthony the best puppy dog eyes he could. They always made Anthony crack. He knew begging probably wasn't the best thing to do, but he needed to know what was bothering Anthony so much. He wasn't sure if he would be able to sleep without that information.

Anthony remained silent. He looked down at the ground once again. Maxwell sighed in frustration and shivered once again. He was certain Anthony would fall for his puppy dog eyes. 

Maxwell sat quietly for a few moments, thinking. Concern had made his drowsiness subside. _What else can I say or do to convince him to talk? Wait, what does he do to me to get me to talk?_

Anthony was excellent at convincing Maxwell to open up. He usually just had to ask "what's wrong", and Maxwell would talk. They had been friends for awhile before they started dating, so they had established a deep bond and strong trust. They were very comfortable around each other. However, both of them had a habit of bottling up their emotions until they broke. They constantly had to remind each other to express their emotions.

“Anthony, please. I'm just trying to help. Bottling up your emotions won't help,” Maxwell explained. He knew from years of experience. He was getting better at letting himself be vulnerable every once in awhile, though.

Anthony sighed and looked at Maxwell once again. Maxwell smiled a bit; he had a feeling Anthony would finally open up.

“Okay, okay, fine. Something is bothering me,” Anthony said.

“What?” Maxwell asked, even though he had an idea of what was bothering him. “What's bothering you?” _I'm no therapist, but maybe - hopefully - I can help._

“Something happened at the club, while I was performing...” Anthony began. He took a deep breath. “There was a group of two girls and a guy in the front row. I heard them...talking...”

Maxwell got a weird, almost nervous, feeling in his chest. He knew it couldn't have been brought on by illness. “What were they talking about?” _Probably nothing good._

Anthony huffed in anger. Not because of Maxwell's question, but because he was remembering what the three were saying. “They- They kept talking shit about you. They kept saying you're untalented, you try too hard, and your jokes, makeup, and performances are awful. They were being complete assholes and-” 

Anthony stopped himself and took a breath. He had to calm down before he began yelling. He and Maxwell couldn't afford another noise complaint. He was known for being quick-witted and snappy, but he did have self control. “It just pissed me the fuck off. It took all of me to not stop the whole show and go off on them. I know I shouldn't even waste my breath on scum like them.”

Maxwell frowned and look down. He was used to comments like that, but it still hurt. - At least they didn't make him cry or completely shut down anymore. - He didn't know if it was right to feel upset, since he was the one that begged Anthony to talk, even after a he had been warned. He basically asked for it.

Anthony frowned as he looked at Maxwell. “See, I knew it would hurt you,” he said. 

Maxwell quickly pushed his sadness aside; he had to focus on the task at hand. “Anthony, it's okay. I asked for it. I'm used to this comments anyway,” he explained. “I've been getting them ever since I started doing drag.”

“You shouldn't be used to them,” Anthony said as he scooted closer to Maxwell on the other end of the couch. He knew he would never be used to hateful comments. He didn't understand how someone could.

“That's not important now. We're focusing on you,” Maxwell insisted.

“But I told you what you wanted to know,” Anthony replied. 

“Well, I'm proud of you for not lashing out at them. Don't worry about what people say about me,” Maxwell explained. “As I said, I'm used to it.”

Anthony cocked his head in confusion. “How could I not care about what others say, especially if it involves you? You're my everything. You started out as my sister, now you're my boyfriend and best friend. I'm always going to care about what people think of you. I know you care about what people say about me.”

Maxwell was about to say something, but he stopped. He was at a loss for words. Anthony was absolutely right. Maxwell had always cared about what others thought of Anthony. He hated it when people called Anthony the "angry black lady", or when they harassed him, or when they said he had horrible makeup skills, because none of those things were true. People only saw the Anthony that the producers and editors of RuPaul's Drag Race wanted them to see. They only saw one side: the villain. They never saw how sweet, loving, and caring he could be.

“Am I right?” Anthony asked. 

Maxwell nodded. “You are.”

Both of them looked away from each other fell silent. It was a comfortable silence. It allowed them to have time to think to themselves. All that could be heard was traffic, sirens, distant yelling, and the sounds of stray animals fighting or looking for a meal. The city-lights seemed to dance on the floor beneath the window and anything else they reflected off of.

Maxwell was glad Anthony had opened up to him. He had only done it two or three times before. It was nice to be reminded that even the strongest people let their guard down and care about others.

Maxwell hoped Anthony would continue to work on self control and anger since he was doing good so far. Then, people would begin to see the true Anthony. He knew he still had some things to work on, but he didn't want to focus on them at that moment. He wanted focus on Anthony's accomplishments.

Anthony was the first to break the silence between the two. “I'm fine now,” he said.

Maxwell looked at Anthony, and he saw that all of the tension was out of Anthony's body. He noticed Anthony's slight smile and usual slouching. This let Maxwell know that he was telling the truth. 

He smiled. “That's great.”

“How about we go to bed now? It's late, I'm tired, and you're shaking like a leaf,” Anthony explained with a smile. 

Maxwell yawned. He didn't realize how bad he was shivering, or how tired he was until now. He nodded in agreement. “We should.”

Then, he and Anthony stood up headed towards their bedroom. Maxwell got into bed first. He pulled the covers over himself and got comfortable. Anthony changed into pajamas before joining Maxwell in bed. They cuddled up to each other as they slowly fell asleep. Maxwell felt warm and safe next to Anthony. He was extremely grateful to have a guy like him.


End file.
